Why Painswick is the oddest course you’ll ever play

Steve Carroll

Look up the definition of ‘quirky’ in the dictionary and you’ll probably find the words ‘Painswick Golf Club’. Welcome to the land of the strange

Painswick Golf Club is the dictionary definition of ‘quirky’.

The Cotswold course isn’t like anything you’ve ever played. It’s an entertaining, weird and wonderful jaunt around hills, banks, quarries and even an ancient fort.

It’s not much more than 4,800 yards from the medal tees. It has seven par 3s and only a couple of par 4s stretch to 300 yards – never mind 400.

You can find birdies in abundance but don’t be deceived by the length. There is devil in this detail too.

Tiny greens and some very unconventional lies mean you’re only a mediocre shot away from a shocking score.

But if you want to have fun, you won’t go far wrong at Painswick Golf Club.

• NCG Top 100s: England’s Top 100 Courses – featuring Painswick

Golf may not have been the only sport to have been played on this rather unique patch of land through the years.

The course is actually built on the remnants of an Iron Age fort – Painswick Beacon – the origins of which are thought to date back as far as 3,000 years.

Also known as Kimsbury hill fort, you can see the remains of the huge areas of earth and stone that form vital parts of the 5th, 6th, 7th, 10th and 11th holes.

The 5th is the most spectacular. Known as Castle – and it’s fairly obvious why when you see the hole in all its glory – it’s only 114 yards long but you must clear a 70-foot high fort rampart. With the green just 12 yards beyond the crest, it’s imperative not to be short.

Those who don’t make it have a near impossible up and down.

painswick golf club

The historic defences look formidable to golfers today, but Painswick’s website states they were once much more forbidding.

That was before they were quarried in the Middle Ages to collect the stone that built Gloucester Cathedral and a number of other churches in the city.

While the fort itself has been dated to the first century BC, all sorts have been found in the remains – with pottery, coins and archaeology from the Iron Age to the latter part of the Roman era among the items pulled out of the earth.

So next time you hear someone telling you they’ve walked in the footsteps of history – because Seve once teed off there 30 years ago – point them instead to Painswick Golf Club.

About the author

Steve Carroll

A journalist for more than 25 years, Steve has been immersed in club golf for almost as long.

A former club captain, he has passed the Level 3 Rules of Golf exam with distinction having attended the R&A’s prestigious Tournament Administrators and Referees Seminar.

Steve has officiated at a host of high-profile tournaments, including Open Regional Qualifying, PGA Fourball Championship, English Men’s Senior Amateur, and the North of England Amateur Championship. In 2023, he made his international debut as part of the team that refereed England vs Switzerland U16 girls.

A part of NCG’s Top 100s panel, Steve has a particular love of links golf and is frantically trying to restore his single-figure handicap. He’d like to tell you he floats around 10. The reality is more like 13.

Steve plays at Sandburn Hall, in York, and is a country member at Close House in Newcastle. He has served on various club committees during his time in the game, and is the current Rules Secretary at Sandburn.

Having studied history at Newcastle University, he became a journalist having passed his NCTJ exams at Darlington College of Technology. He began his career working on weekly papers in Newcastle, before joining the York Press in 2001. After five years as a news reporter, he joined the sports desk – specialising in horse racing and snooker – and was Digital Sports Editor when he joined National Club Golfer in 2016.

What’s in Steve’s bag: TaylorMade Stealth 2 driver, 3-wood, and hybrids; Caley 01T irons 4-PW; TaylorMade Hi-Toe wedges, Odyssey 2Ball Microhinge putter.

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